Couldn't Possibly Mean Kevin
by emzypemzy
Summary: Garcia'a out with friend's from California and they make her realise a few things she should've picked up on. Part one of a set of 3 stories.


_**This is the first part of a three part "series"...the others will be posted in the following few days =)**_

_**This one's for someone who's not having the best of days; just 'cos I can't do anything else but I can do this =P**_

_**Disclaimer: I don't own a thing!**_

_**-x-x-x-x-**_

At one of her semi-regular meet ups with her closest friends from California - who had spread themselves all over the country by now - Garcia had already put away quite a few of the delicious cocktails, she could certainly feel the effects of the alcohol swirling in her veins. She was in her own wee world, her mind wandering back to Virginia and to where she would usually be on a night like this: in her best friend's house with popcorn and a movie, or with take out and a beer, or even just chilling in front of whatever sports game was on that weekend, not that she cared much for sports, but he did. No matter what they were doing, however, she knew that there would always be a big 'ole slab of flirtatious banter. It really was a brilliant way to spend their down time. When her mind wandered to other things she wished they'd do, just the two of them, she suddenly realised that Sara was asking her a question.

"Sorry," Garcia muttered, pulling herself back into the proceedings of their girly gathering, grateful for the distraction to stop her thoughts from wandering where they ought not go.

"I said; are you still going out with that really gorgeous bloke I met last time I was in Virginia?" Sara repeated with a smile at her friend's far off look knowing that she had quite obviously been lost in thought, and if the somewhat dreamy expression was to be taken at face value then she was thinking of a guy, Sara just hoped it was still the same guy that she had been seeing the last time she had been over Pen's way.

Garcia racked her mind. The last time Sara had been in Virginia had to have been about six months ago, when she was going out with...Kevin, and sure Kevin wasn't _bad-_looking as such, but he certainly wasn't what you would describe as a 'really gorgeous bloke'. Sara couldn't possibly mean Kevin, could she?

"What, Kevin?" Garcia asked, confusion evident on her face as her brows creased.

"No, god no!" Sara replied, her nose crinkling in slight distaste. "Sorry Garcie, but that was one man you really could have done so much better than! You were completely out of his league, girl." She stated factually and the other two announced their agreement. "No, no," She corrected. "I mean that gorgeous, muscled hunk of man meat that kept calling you 'Baby Girl'." She said, hoping her friend was still with the delicious man who had seemed to worship the ground she walked on.

"What, Derek?" She asked in confusion as her stomach simultaneously flip-flopped at the fact that Sara had thought they were dating. Her and Derek Morgan, dating! A thrill ran through her at the thought alone; her friend thought that her and her best friend, greatest flirting buddy, and secretly the man of her dreams had been dating. _If only_ were the words that sprung to mind.

"That's it!" Sara squealed excitedly, looking around at the others and seeing their matching grins as she proceeded her little 'interrogation' of sorts. "Derek, Derek Morgan! The hottie with the body who couldn't keep his eyes, or hands, off of you! So what's the story Pen, you gonna enlighten us girlies?" She asked, indicating the three of them sat looking at her with obvious curiosity.

She sighed somewhat sadly. "There is no story, ladies. We're just friends."

"You've gotta be shitting me Penelope?" Sara exclaimed, slapping her thigh before leaning forward and continuing to speak, her voice somewhat quieter than before: "I was _convinced_ you two were as together as Posh and Becks!" She exclaimed. "He couldn't stop flirting with you-"

"That's just what we do sweetcheeks." She interrupted, the slight sadness still colouring her voice.

"He couldn't take his eyes off of you every time you spoke, he hung on every single word, and was practically finishing your sentences in some of-"

"We're best friend's, we know everything about each other, it's just how-"

"He was forever touching you, any chance he got." Sara butted in, not allowing Garcia to wave this away with her friends excuse. She then directed her next part towards Karen and Lauren. "His arm was always around her shoulders or her waist, or even his hand on her lower back – he couldn't get close enough to her."

"Sweetie, he's just a touchy feely person, don't go reading into things." She warned, almost as a warning to herself as well, not to let herself believe what they were saying.

"Nu uh, peaches, I know touchy feely and that wasn't touchy feely, that was almost like he just wanted to be near you; and those looks! Oh dear lord the man could have seared a hole through a wall with the hot looks he was shooting your way!" She exclaimed, waving her hand next to her face in a fan like motion.

"W-what?" Garcia stuttered, her usual excuse that they were nothing but platonic friends dying on her lips as her curiosity got the better of her.

"Oh, honey! The man was shooting so many hot looks at you it was a wonder you didn't melt under the heat!" She said with a laugh, turning once again to the other two at their table: "I have _never_ seen a man look so longingly at a woman before! He looked like he positively wanted to ravish her until the cows came home!" She said with a laugh. "There was a ridiculous amount of sexual chemistry going on there, trust me."

"R-really?" Garcia asked in a small voice, not daring to believe it just yet.

"Really, honestly and truly, woman." Sara said happily, turning back to face Garcia. "The man couldn't stop devouring you with his eyes! And whenever you spoke his attention was there – _bam! –_ you were the only person he could see, I was so sure, _so sure_, that you two were together, there was such _chemistry_ and such _love_ there. I even went home and told Dan that you'd finally met your Mr Right! I was so pleased for you." She said with a smile as she saw the longing look in her oldest friend's eyes at her words.

"What's the real deal then sugar plum? With you and the delectable Derek?" Karen asked, leaning forward in her chair to look Garcia in the eye.

"Nothing, we're just friends." Came her automatic response.

"Hon," Lauren said disbelievingly, jumping on the band wagon. "I'm a lawyer, Karen's a teacher and Sara's a cop and we've all known you since you were three, we know your automatic response when we hear it. Plus, I distinctly remember the name of said _friend_ coming up in our phone catch-ups a lot, _a lot_ a lot. And Penelope Garcia doesn't just tell us about any old Joe, Dick or Harry. Come on twinkle toes," She encouraged, using their oldest nickname for her from her ballet dancing days. "Spill."

_Spill..._

If only it were that easy, if only she could just let it all out. Actually, for once she realised that she really could: they were a safe distance from Derek with them being in New York this weekend and none of them would tell a soul, it was part of their pact since they were kids and it still held true to the day. It was safe for her to finally let it out.

And so, she found herself pouring over the details of their friendship; their flirting, their nicknames, their phone calls and their teasing. And with the telling of her story and the input from her three oldest friends she realised a few things.

One, she really couldn't run from her feelings any longer.

Two, her best friend was in fact sending her all the signals – she had just been too blind for far too long to notice them.

And; three, sometimes all you needed to realise this was a few pitchers of cocktails and three fantastic old friends.

On their encouragement and with their words of wisdom in her mind she knew that the second her feet hit Virginian soil she was going to talk to him. They both deserved to at least give a "them" a chance to see if they could work.

_**-x-x-x-x-**_

_**Like it? Don't? Either way let me know.**_


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